1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to system and a method for a vehicle cab with landmine protection for occupants of the cab.
2. Background Art
Military and civilian organizations typically attempt to clear landmines from occupied areas where the landmines have been planted. However, the attempts to remove or safely detonate hidden explosives are not always completely successful. Also, there are times when vehicles travel in areas that have been mined unbeknown to the operators of the vehicles. Furthermore, vehicles that are operated in contested regions are sometimes attacked with grenades, landmines, improvised explosive devices (IEDs), makeshift bombs, and the like that can buried or disguised. Such explosives devices can be set up anywhere and can be exploded at any time as the vehicle passes over the explosive device.
Armor is often mounted to the underbody of the vehicles. However, the armor typically provides protection against projectiles and not the shock and vibration effects (e.g., the impulse, acceleration, jerk, and the like) of the explosive blast on the vehicle cab occupants. As such, vehicles occasionally encounter and detonate explosive devices that damage or destroy the vehicle, and injure or kill occupants of the cab (i.e., cabin, passenger compartment, vehicle interior, etc.) of the vehicle. In particular, spinal related injuries are often generated by the shock and vibration effects of the explosive blast on the vehicle cab occupants seated within the vehicle.
Referring to FIG. 1, a side view illustrating an example of a conventional vehicle and cab mounting system 10 is shown. The vehicle and cab mounting system 10 generally includes a cab 12 mounted to a frame 14 via a plurality of mounts 16 (e.g., mounts 16a-16n). The vehicle and cab mounting system 10 generally has underbody armor (not shown).
Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, top and cross-sectional views, respectively, of a conventional cab-to-body mount 16 are shown prior to installation in the system 10. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken at line 3-3 of FIG. 2. The mount 16 generally includes an outer elastomer or rubber isolator portion 30 having a shoulder region 32, and a rigid (typically steel) insert 40. The insert 40 is typically a cylindrical tube or pipe that is sized to receive a mounting bolt or stud (described in connection with FIG. 4). The isolator 30 has a compression region 50 that is sized such that the insert 40 is shorter than the thickness of the isolator portion 30 where the insert 40 is positioned. The insert 40 is positioned flush with the outer edge of the shoulder region 32 and the compression region 50 extends past the insert 40 prior to the mount 16 being installed.
Referring to FIG. 4, a diagram illustrating an installation of the mount 16 in connection with the cab 12 and the frame 14 is shown. The mount 16 is installed between the cab 12 and the frame 14. A bolt/nut combination 60 is installed in the insert 40 to fasten the cab 12, the mount 16 and the frame 14 together. The bolt/nut combination 60 is tightened and the isolator portion 30 is compressed such that the compression region 50 bulges and is generally flush with the insert 40. The conventional mount 16, therefore, provides a limited amount of shock and vibration isolation to occupants of the vehicle.
Conventional attempts to ameliorate, mitigate, reduce or eliminate shock and vibration to the vehicle cab 12 and thus the occupants thereof caused by the detonation of a landmine, IED, grenade, and the like have only been partially successful and sometimes injury and death of the vehicle occupants still occur.
Thus, there exists a need and an opportunity for an improved system and a method for a vehicle cab with landmine protection for occupants of the vehicle cab. Such an improved system and method may overcome one or more of the deficiencies of the conventional approaches.